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Space Force targeting more affordable GPS satellites

Space Force targeting more affordable GPS satellites



The Area Power desires its subsequent fleet of GPS satellites to be smaller, cheaper and extra resilient — and it’s seeking to a mixture of business and protection companies to assist design these spacecraft.

4 corporations — Sierra Area, L3Harris, Astranis and Axient, which was just lately acquired by Astrion — gained examine contracts in late September to draft early ideas for the Area Power’s Resilient GPS program, or R-GPS. In 5 to eight months, the service plans to decide on a minimum of two corporations to finalize their designs and construct prototypes. It would then decide a number of companies to construct the primary eight satellites, which it desires prepared for launch by 2028.

This system, anticipated to value $1 billion over the following 5 years, comes amid rising concern from Pentagon and different authorities leaders about GPS vulnerability. The system, which guides weapons and helps navy models navigate, has been a goal for Russia in its struggle with Ukraine, utilizing digital warfare to jam indicators regularly. Customers have additionally reported elevated spoofing incidents, a way of manipulating GPS information to confuse a receiver about its location. This may be carried out utilizing comparatively low cost software-defined radios.

The Area Power is concentrating on $50 to $80 million per satellite tv for pc — a fraction of the $250 million it prices for only one Lockheed Martin-build GPS IIIF spacecraft. That decrease unit value will permit the service to launch dozens of satellites designed to fly for about 5 years that may be upgraded with new capabilities on an everyday cycle.

The strategy is modeled off the Area Growth Company’s technique for fielding massive constellations of small missile monitoring and information transport satellites and is one which the Area Power desires to use to different missions, like house area consciousness. Proliferation, and the decrease unit prices that assist allow it, is what the service hopes will carry resiliency to those constellations.

For GPS, bigger numbers of small satellites augmenting the bigger spacecraft that make up the present constellation ought to make it tougher for enemies to focus on the fleet and can guarantee there’s a backup functionality after they do, the Area Power says. The satellites may have a spread of civil indicators in addition to M-code, a safer navy sign with anti-jam capabilities.

Designing for affordability

The companies tapped to attract up ideas for this system informed Protection Information they’re attempting to stability affordability with enhanced capabilities as they think about satellite tv for pc design choices.

Erik Daehler, vp of protection, satellites and spacecraft techniques at Sierra Area, stated the corporate’s strategy includes designing modular spacecraft with payloads that might be upgraded via on-orbit software program upgrades or swapped out in future growth blocks.

That type of versatile design, he stated, may permit the Area Power to launch teams of satellites carrying totally different payloads.

“The concept is to remain in entrance of the adversary’s evolution and, in reality, get forward of them in order that they don’t know what’s launching on every satellite tv for pc that we put up,” Daehler stated.

In a extra conventional growth program, it could possibly take years so as to add new functionality onto a sizzling manufacturing line of extra complicated satellites. Sierra Area desires to make that course of extra seamless, which Daehler stated ought to finally make it extra inexpensive.

“We need to make it in order that the potential is an order of magnitude inexpensive than the present constellation and be capable to be upgraded each time you may have a LEAP with minimal impacts,” he stated.

Whereas designing the satellite tv for pc for flexibility, the corporate can be ready to attract a tough line on what’s often known as “necessities creep” — the tendency for the Protection Division or different clients to vary necessities in a approach that drives main adjustments to a system’s design.

“We’re not redesigning the platform dramatically to match a payload,” Daehler stated. “As a substitute, we’re saying, that is the payload capability you’ll be able to placed on the platform.”

L3Harris, a key participant in U.S. positioning, navigation and timing packages for the final 50 years, plans to attract from that have in its R-GPS design. The corporate is the prime contractor for the Air Power Analysis Laboratory’s experimental PNT program, Navigation Expertise Satellite tv for pc-3, or NTS-3, which is slated to launch within the coming months.

“We’re actually excited to see that get on orbit and begin demonstrating the superior capabilities that come from our skill to leverage our heritage and pivot into one thing that’s new and modern,” Andrew Builta, vp of the corporate’s house payload and constellation portfolio, informed Protection Information. “With Resilient GPS, our intent is to marry these two issues.”

L3Harris hasn’t introduced its program companions, however Builta stated it’s seeking to business suppliers for issues like its satellite tv for pc bus and is taking a look at methods to maintain its schedule as tight as attainable.

“One of many key duties we’ve got in these early phases is to judge the market from a bus perspective,” he stated. “What’s the true timeline for us to have the ability to exit and procure the supplies and get via testing and all of the issues that you simply want to have the ability to launch a system and make sure that it really works on orbit versus a demo or an experiment?”

Kent Nickle, govt director of fast built-in house options at Astrion, stated the corporate is aiming to drive down value by growing a modular satellite tv for pc designed to “perform a little little bit of every thing.”

Within the preliminary examine section, the techniques engineering agency is on the lookout for the precise strategy to satisfy this system’s baseline necessities and doubtlessly construct on them with extra functionality, like boosted M-code and regional navy safety, which gives extra anti-jam know-how.

Astrion’s R-GPS provider group consists of K2 Area, a startup that may present a satellite tv for pc bus. Radiance Applied sciences will construct the payload and STC will assist with structure and integration.

Nickle, who labored within the Air Power’s house launch enterprise for greater than 15 years, stated the Area Power’s strategy to R-GPS makes it simpler for smaller, non-traditional companies to be concerned in this system.

“If it was a conventional winner-take-all kind of factor, the federal government’s going to be much less inclined to take dangers,” he stated. “They’ve allowed different corporations to take part which, ultimately, advantages your complete business, however advantages the federal government too.”

Astranis is a type of companies that’s new to the PNT mission. Based in 2015, the corporate’s focus is on constructing small, maneuverable satellites for increased orbits, equipping them with top-notch digital processing capabilities.

CEO John Gedmark informed Protection Information that when the Area Power began soliciting concepts for R-GPS early this 12 months, the corporate took a while to think about whether or not its current satellite tv for pc bus and parts of its payload have been the precise match for the mission.

“After we spent a while actually digging in on it, the reply was sure,” Gedmark stated. “So, we’re leaning ahead on it, and we see large potential right here.”

Astranis is proposing its new line of satellites, Nexus, for R-GPS. It already has orders from clients for greater than 10 satellites, and Gedmark stated the corporate is making ready its manufacturing amenities to construct “many dozens” of satellites within the subsequent few years. The agency has partnered with Xona Area Programs to supply PNT algorithms for its payload.

Funding stability

The Area Power’s R-GPS technique emphasizes velocity, evidenced in its plan to launch the primary satellites inside 4 years.

In April, the Air Power introduced it could use authority from Congress to shift $40 million in funding from elsewhere within the Area Power’s funds to start growth on Resilient R-GPS earlier than it’s authorized as a part of the fiscal 2025 funds cycle. These authorities, often known as quick-start, have been authorized within the Fiscal 2024 Nationwide Protection Authorization Act.

Some in Congress have been skeptical of the hassle, questioning whether or not the quick-start course of is the very best pathway. The Home Appropriations protection subcommittee proposed slicing this system’s funds request in its mark of the FY25 protection spending invoice.

“Whereas proliferation might present some benefits, it isn’t clear how these extra satellites enhance the resilience in opposition to the first jamming risk to GPS, in comparison with various ideas for place, navigation, and timing techniques being pursued elsewhere within the Division of Protection,” lawmakers stated in a report accompanying the invoice, launched June 12.

Cordell DeLaPena, Area Programs Command’s program govt officer for navy communication and PNT, informed reporters final month the service is working with the subcommittee to handle their issues. Whereas there’s been progress, he stated, there are nonetheless a number of open points, together with issues about whether or not there are sufficient terminals obtainable to help extra GPS satellites.

“Each time we converse to the [lawmakers], we transfer the ball somewhat bit,” he stated.

Courtney Albon is C4ISRNET’s house and rising know-how reporter. She has coated the U.S. navy since 2012, with a give attention to the Air Power and Area Power. She has reported on a number of the Protection Division’s most vital acquisition, funds and coverage challenges.



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